Chapter 15: Psychological Disorders

Question 1

Abnormal Psychology

Answer 1

Scientific study of psychological disorders and abnormal behavior

Question 2

Insane (insanity)

Answer 2

a legal term, not a medical or psychological one. Insanity has implications for being held responsible for a criminal act (an issue of free will)

Question 3

Deviance

Answer 3

• The individual’s behavior, thoughts, and emotions are unusual

Question 4

Distress

Answer 4

• The individual is negatively affecting others and/or self

Question 5

Dysfunction

Answer 5

• The individual’s behavior/thoughts/emotions are interfering with daily functioning

Question 6

Danger

Answer 6

• The individual’s behavior/thoughts/emotions are putting others or him/herself at risk for physical harm

Question 7

Clinical Interview

Answer 7

• Meeting face to face with a client and asking questions in a structured or unstructured format

Question 8

Clinical Tests

Answer 8

• Clinician administers a questionnaire with the client

Question 9

Clinical Observations

Answer 9

• Clinician observes the client’s behavior

Question 10

Analog Observation

Answer 10

client observed in clinical environment (office, school, hospital, etc.)

Question 11

Naturalistic Observation

Answer 11

client observed in everyday environment

Question 12

Self Monitoring

Answer 12

clients observe/record their own behavior

Question 13

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)

Answer 13

• A manual created by clinicians to aid in diagnosing and classifying psychological disorders
• Published the the American Psychiatric Association
• It provides standardized terms and criteria to define and diagnose disorders
• An early predecessor was originally titled Statistical Manual for the Use of Institutions for the Insane
• The current edition is the DSM-5(2013) and it contains nearly 300 disorders, sorted by type and subtype

Question 14

When was the first modern edition of DSM published?

Answer 14

First modern edition (DSM-1) was published in 1953

Question 15

How Widespread are Mental Disorder?

Answer 15

• Nearly half (46%) of Americans will have a diagnosable mental disorder in their lifetime
• Only about 6% of Americans will have a severely debilitating mental disorder requiring intense therapy or hospitalization

Question 16

What is the most common diagnosed category of disorders?

Answer 16

Anxiety

• Much less common disorders (but popular in the media) include schizophrenia and dissociative identity disorder

Question 17

Reasons on why psychological disorders are increasing

Answer 17

• Clinicians are getting better at diagnosing disorders and diagnosing them earlier than before (DSM & fewer symptoms have to be expressed to count towards diagnosis than before)
• More behaviors/thoughts/emotions are considered to be abnormal than before (The overall number of official disorders keeps increasing with each edition of the DSM & While some new additions seem legitimate (such as adding subtypes of autism including
  Asperger’s syndrome) some of these disorders seem a bit oversensitive (One newer disorder in the DSM is “caffeine intoxication” which can result after 3 or more cups of coffee))
• The mental health of the population appears to be getting worse

Question 18

What Causes Psychological Disorders?

Answer 18

• Biological/Physiological Model
• Psychodynamic Model
• Cognitive-Behavioral Model
• Sociocultural Model

Question 19

Biological Model for psychological Disorders

Answer 19

• Disorders arise due to malfunctions in the brain disease, injury, rain infection OR imbalance in neurotransmitters (serotonin=depression) OR hereditary (bipolar and schizophrenia)

Question 20

Psychodynamic Model for Psychological Disorders

Answer 20

• Underlying, unconscious forces 
cause conflict and create disorders
• If one has problems during 
childhood, they will become 
“fixated” and cannot properly 
adjust and develop

Question 21

Cognitive-Behavioral Model of Psychological Disorders

Answer 21

• Disorders arise from maladaptive behavior and problematic thought
• Environment improperly reinforces unhealthy behavior• Intense, competitive workplace encourages drug or alcohol use
• Unrealistic appraisals of the self, others, and environment contribute to disorders• One could overreact to mildly stressful situations, or undervalue meaningful qualities of self and others
• Focus too much on negative experiences and ignore positive ones

Question 22

Disorder categories

Answer 22

• Anxiety disorder
• Mood disorder
• Substance abuse disorder
• Personality disorder

Question 23

Anxiety disorders

Answer 23

• They tend to feature: - Irrational, disabling levels of fear or anxiety
- Fear or anxiety that is persistent or easily triggered
• Generalized anxiety disorder: - Persistent anxiety or fear without a specific trigger - Restlessness, has difficulty concentrating or sleeping

Question 24

Stress Disorders

Answer 24

• Stress disorders often feature anxiety or depression following a specific, traumatic event
• If the symptoms last less than a month, it is called Acute stress disorder
• If the symptoms last more than a month, it is called Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Key symptoms include:• Hyper alertness to surroundings
- Easily startled by ordinary stimuli in environment
- Sleep disturbances
- Overwhelming guilt

Question 25

Mood Disorders

Answer 25

• Mood disorders typically feature
- Depression: low, sad state in which 
one feels overwhelmed
- Depression is the most common 
symptom/diagnosis for mood 
disorders
- Mania: inappropriate elation and 
frenzied energy

Question 26

Major Depressive Disorder

Answer 26

• The most commonly diagnosed mood disorder
• It features symptoms in five areas
-Emotional: depressed mood
-Motivational: loss of desire to do usual activities, lack of drive
-Behavioral: less active and productive, may move and speak slowly
-Cognitive: negative self-evaluation, self-blame, pessimism
-Physical: headaches, indigestion, constipation, dizzy spells, pain, sleep and eating disturbance
• A typical major depressive disorder diagnosis requires the symptoms last at
least two weeks

Question 27

Bipolar Disorder

Answer 27

• Bipolar Disorder is when an individual cycles between depression and
mania
• In addition to depression, the mania symptoms typical of bipolar disorder
include
- Emotional: powerful highs and lows
- Motivational: seek excitement and companionship
- Behavioral: may move and speak quickly
- Cognitive: poor judgment and planning, optimism, grandiosity
- Physical: energetic, require little sleep

Question 28

Substance Abuse Disorders

Answer 28

These disorders feature the same main characteristic regardless of the particular drug involved:• Dependence on a substance even though it has physical, mental, and social side effects
• Other key characteristics of substance abuse disorders include
- Tolerance: needing more quantities of the drug over time to achieve the same feeling
- Withdrawal: unpleasant physical and psychological sensations when use of the substance slows or stops

Question 29

Personality Disorders

Answer 29

• Maladaptive patterns of behavior 
and thought that clash or violate 
cultural norms
• Some famous types include
       - Borderline personality disorder: 
unstable emotions, sense of self, 
and relationships with others
       - Narcissistic personality disorder: 
exaggerated feelings of self 
importance, lack of empathy, 
excessive need for admiration

Question 30

Schizophrenia

Answer 30

• Losing contact with reality
• Key symptoms include
      - Delusions: false beliefs
      - Hallucinations: false sensory 
perceptions
      - Disorganized thinking and speech
      - Inappropriate emotions and 
behaviors

Question 31

Dissociative Identity Disorder

Answer 31

• A person has separate, distinct 
personalities and memories
• Despite its popularity in popular 
culture, dissociative identity disorder 
is a very rare condition

Question 32

Treatment for Psychological Disorders

Answer 32

• Drug Therapy
• Insight Therapy
• Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

Question 33

Drug Therapy

Answer 33

• Drug therapy
• The most commonly applied treatment for psychological disorders
• Commonly prescribed drugs for disorders include:
• Antidepressants for depressive disorders
• Antipsychotics for schizophrenia
• Mood stabilizers for bipolar disorders
• Most drugs target neurotransmitters in the brain
• Some mimic the desired neurotransmitter or prevent its reuptake between synapses,
therefore increasing the concentration (such as antidepressants increasing serotonin)
• Some reduce the release of the desired neurotransmitter or block its transmission
between synapses, therefore reducing the concentration (such as antipsychotics
reducing dopamine)

Question 34

Insight Therapy

Answer 34

• Otherwise known as psychoanalysis, it is the “talking cure” created by Freud
• Assumes root causes of a disorder are based in childhood experiences or trauma
• The patient must discuss current and past events, dreams, or whatever the
psychoanalyst can use to uncover the underlying cause of the disorder

Question 35

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

Answer 35

• Must recognize maladaptive behaviors or thoughts and correct them
• Instead of looking at childhood experiences for clues, will focus on present
circumstances and the immediate environment
• Uses many techniques including reframing (adjusting expectations or
assumptions) or exposure (repeatedly and directly encountering a fear-inducing
stimulus)